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There is no longer any doubt: The world's climate is changing. Human activity during the last 100
years, with deforestation and the burning of oil and natural gas, has caused the amount of CO2 in
the atmosphere to increase to a level the Earth is not “used to”. The atmosphere surrounds our
planet as a layer of gas – a layer that kind of works in the same way as the glass in a greenhouse.
Sunlight passes through this layer and is absorbed as heat by the Earth. Some of this heat his
radiated back into space, but the extra CO2 in the atmosphere is now trapping too much of this heat.
That is why the Earth's temperature is rising – and why our climate is changing. During the last 100
years, the global surface temperature has risen by 0.7 °C. The next 100 years scientists think it
likely that the temperature will rise a further 1.5 to 6 °C.
This can cause many changes. Already we can see that polar ice is melting. Sea levels are expected
to raise flooding low-lying land and islands and changing the coastline. More extreme weather, with
more storms, more rainfall and more drought with increased desertification in areas around the
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Prospects are overwhelming, but we are not helpless. If we act now, it can make a big difference to
the extent of the problems we will be facing the next 100 years.
Planting trees is one way to counter climate change. Saving energy is another. In addition, the
invention of new solutions is a third way. They are all important.
2. What is the carbon cycle – and how does it influence the climate?
Carbon exists in many different places in our environment – dissolved in oceans
and lakes, in the biomass of plants and animals, in the atmosphere as CO2, in rocks
and soils, and underground as oil, coal, etc.
Carbon is constantly exchanged between the different carbon sources and carbon
stocks in a process known as the carbon cycle. Carbon is primarily exchanged in
the form of CO2 – and the carbon stocks are actually stocks that can absorb CO2 and reduce its
concentration in the atmosphere.
To deal with this we must at once emit less CO2, stock carbon in new and existing forests and wood
products, and develop alternative energy sources to coal, oil and gas.
Some figures
The European forests (outside Russia) hold 9 552 million tons of carbon. This amount increases
each year with 115.83 million tons of carbon. The Russian forests stock 37 000 million tonnes of
carbon and has an annual increases of 440 million tons of carbon.
Photosynthesis
Using the energy from sunlight, green leaves absorb CO2 from the air. Inside the leaf cells, CO2
bounds together with water, and converts into the sugar substance glucose. The tree transform
glucose to wood, branches, fruit, leaves, roots etc. In this way, CO2 remains inside the tree as
carbon. There is only one waste substance – oxygen.
Research at the Swedish Agricultural University shows that the faster a forest grows, the more CO2
is absorbed. From a climate point of view, it is better to cultivate the forest and make use of the
trees rather than “leaving it alone” – provided of course that the forest is managed sustainably and
that all necessary environmental concerns are taken in the production of timber. It is important to
remember that there also is a need for old growth forest.
The trees we fell and extract contain a lot of carbon. This carbon can be stored for many years in
wood products.
The table below lists how much CO2 and carbon that is stored in an average tree at different ages:
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Here is an example:
If we use 1 m3 of wood for a house, we have spared the atmosphere for 1 ton of CO2. The carbon
stays in the wood materials.
If we use 1 m3 of wood instead of 1 m3 of concrete, steel, plastic or aluminium, which are more
energy intensive materials to produce, we will have spared the atmosphere for on average another 1
tonne of CO2.
Therefore in total 2 tonnes of CO2 are not emitted to the atmosphere if we substitute other
materials and use 1 m3 of wood for construction.
By comparison, 1 tonne of CO2 equals the emission from the burning of 430 litres of gasoline.
Wood is a renewable and versatile raw material, and it has many lives:
1. Wood products
Timber is sawed and used directly as building materials, furniture, paper, packaging, etc.
2. Recycling
Used construction timber and other wood materials can be reused. They can also chipped and used
for fibreboards etc. Paper can be recycled several times.
3. Bio energy
Wood products can be used one final time as CO2-neutral bio energy. Waste/bi-products from
sawmills and other wood industries are frequently used as an energy source – both for heat and
electrical power.
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There is a big difference between felling a tree in tropical or subtropical forests and in temperate
forests.
In the world overall, 13 million hectares of forest is cleared annually. This is an area equal to the
size of Greece. Rainforest clearing is the cause of 20 % of global CO2 emissions.
Countries with rainforest are often poor – and many of the people who live there have no other
option than to exploit this resource. Therefore, an important part of the fight against climate change
is to make agreements with rainforest-rich countries on how to protect their forests – and for the
world community to help pay for this protection.
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In sustainable forestry, the environment is accounted for by doing the e.g. following:
To map the forest and create green forest plans, to distinguish the areas for tree production
and areas to be protected.
To take into account key habitats and other environments that require special considerations.
To leave standing and fallen deadwood to provide a basis for biological diversity.
To let old trees with woodpecker holes remain standing, take account of anthills, etc.
Create protection zones along watercourses.
To leave areas of old forest standing.
Certification
Forests can be certified by organisations such as PEFC and FSC, which guarantees that the wood is
grown sustainably. In Denmark, 39 % of the forest area – or 206 357 hectares – is certified.
Forests are unevenly distributed around the world. Top 10 most forested countries, which include
2/3 of all forests in the world, are Russia, Brazil, Canada, USA, China, Australia, Democratic
Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Peru and India.
Trees create the basis for many natural ecosystems. They create a stable climate and help stabilise
the ground and prevent erosion. They protect coasts from waves and ocean swells, they stabilize
sand dunes, protect the groundwater and prevent the spreading of desert.
Forests are very important for biological diversity. They are habitat for up to 90 percent of the
terrestrial species of animals and plants we know.
Trees and shrubs play a central role for rural people throughout the world. The forest provide us
with timber, firewood, food, feed for livestock, oils, rubber, medicine and new materials for new
technologies, and more.
The world's forests only cover about 10 percent of the Earth's surface – but they account for 42
percent of the total photosynthesis of both land and sea.
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Save energy
We can use less energy. Here are some simple ideas – figure out more on your own:
Take your bike
Use the train and bus instead of your car.
Travel without flying
Switch to energy-saving light bulbs – they last 6 to 15 times longer.
Turn off lights and electrical appliances when not in use. Avoid standby mode.
Take short showers.
Hang-dry your clothes instead of using the tumble dryer.
Isolate your house.
Use new forms of energy – solar, wind and bioenergy.
Eat less meat.
Buy locally – and grow your own crops.
Sources: